Small, handheld computing devices have been steadily growing in popularity in recent years. The devices are known by different names, such as palmtops, pocket computers, personal digital assistants, personal organizers, H/PCs, or the like. Additionally, many portable telephone systems, such as cellular phones, incorporate sufficient computing capabilities to fall within the category of the small, handheld computing devices. These devices, hereinafter “small computer devices,” provide much of the same functionality as their larger counterparts. In particular, the small computer devices provide users the ability to perform word processing, task management, spreadsheet processing, address book functions and Internet browsing, as well as many other functions. Of particular importance to small computer device users is the ability to be notified of various events, such as appointment reminders, reception of email, and in the case of portable phones, to be notified of incoming telephone calls and text messages, etc.
Typically notifications may be presented to a user in many different ways. For example, the notifications may be any number or types of audible signals, such as telephone rings, sound wave files or other sounds. Additionally, many small computing devices provide other means of notification, such as by displaying a notification on the display area of the computing device, turning on or flashing a light emitting diode (LED) light, or vibrating. Typically, each event is associated with a particular type of notification and different events often trigger or initiate different types of notifications. For example, receiving email may cause one sound while appointment reminders may trigger a different sound.
One particular drawback associated with notifications in small computing devices relates to the appropriateness of the type of notification used as compared with the constantly changing environment for the user. That is, given the small size of the small computer devices, users typically carry them into numerous different situations. A particular type of notification may be appropriate for one situation, yet not for another. For example, an appointment reminder may be associated with a chime-type notification that generates an audible signal at a predetermined time. The chime may be an appropriate type of notification when the user is alone in an office or at home, but may not be appropriate when the user is in a meeting with other people who may also hear the chime.
One solution to this problem relates to having a mute button on the small computer device so that during situations where a chime notification may not be appropriate, the user can effectively turn audible signals off. Such a mute button typically works in combination with the speaker at a hardware level. A mute button, however, is not an optimal solution since a user may still want some notifications to be audible. For example, a user may desire that all notifications be silent while in a meeting except for critical events, such as receiving a high priority e-mail message. As another example, a user may want all appointment reminders to be silent but the same user may want email notifications to be audible when waiting for an important email or telephone call from a particular person. The mute button does not allow for the distinguishing between different notification events to provide different types of notifications to the user since it essentially turns the speaker off.
Additionally, the mute button only relates to audible signals and does not control vibrations or visual-type signals that may be inappropriate in certain circumstances. Therefore, if the user wants to change the appointment reminders from an audible signal to a vibrating signal, the mute button is ineffective. In such a case the user would have to modify each appointment in the calendar, setting the notification type to vibrate. Not only is this task cumbersome, but it must also be performed each time the environment changes.
Another drawback associated with using a mute button to control notification types is that the user must manually press the mute button when entering a quiet environment, i.e., an environment wherein the user does not want to be audibly notified of events. Placing the onus on the user to manually press the mute button increases the probability that the device will not be placed in a non-audible mode because users tend to forget such things until an audible signal interrupts the user. Thus, a mute button is an unsatisfactory solution to handling notifications.
It is with respect to these considerations and others that the present invention has been made.